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Saturday, March 19, 2016

State of the Tavern - What a Beautiful State it Is :)

Know what the hardest part of retirement mode is thus far? Returning to normal sleeping habits, or at least, the sleeping habits of normal people. I did midnights for nearly the last seven months and even sleeping normal hours (such as they are) still hits me for a late afternoon nap. That too, shall change.

So, here's the Monday thru Thursday breakdown for my time sinks:

- 2 hours a day of game related reading. I am SO behind on reading my gaming purchases and review copies that I've accumulated. Current goal is 3 to 4 mini reviews a week.

- 2 hours a day devoted to the 3 blogs - The Tavern, The Taproom and Saturday Knight Special - posts, research, and the like. These have the greatest chance to be multiple post days.

- 2 hours a day to creating - StarSlinger, random tables, maps, items, spells, classes - the intent is to build a slush pile of content without forcing myself into one type of content. Of course, much of this will be going up on The Tavern and out to my Paetreons.

So, in a way, it's 6 hours a day 4 days a week related to the 3 blogs and gaming material, directly or indirectly. Obviously, 90% of the time will be related to The Tavern and gaming.

Fridays are "Uncle & Pinky Day". So it is written, so it will be done. Probably a single post day.

Saturday will be the day Rach and I scout out local NY Breweries and Brew Pubs. Saturday night is my gaming night. Again, single post day most likely.

Sundays are a bit of everything. Podcast recording every other Sunday. Maybe more often in other podcast come to light. I'd really like to do a weekly OSR News podcast that hits the 15 minute mark, but we'll see. I expect a morning post and a later day post.

As for a series of posts with a specific theme (thank you for some awesome ideas everyone who commented here):

- I'd like to do a series of posts where I informally interview some of the movers and shakers, big and small, in the OSR. This might be done as a podcast with posted transcript. I need to figure this out.

- I like the idea of mining (for lack of a better term :) obscure rules from the early editions of the D&D / AD&D. This might also make an appearance in some form on the Path of Legends Podcast.
- Giving the various neighborhoods of NYC a fantasy rewrite is an awesome idea. Will take some work and research to kick this off properly. Of course, this ties in with the idea of a series of city articles as well as some law enforcement articles.

- I like random tables. I don't much like writing them ;)

- Stories from the Gaming Table. God, yes but then I become the guy at the Con everyone wants to walk away from :)

- Obscure OSR genres? Hmmmm

Alright, I'm thinking about them all. More then one will come to be. Some may be limited in scope, others might be indefinite. God, I do so love it when there's a plan. Even when it's written on a paper napkin ;)

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Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea (thank you Kickstarter) (edit) BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and will soon have some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep shipping shortly in my grubby hands awaiting a review..

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls (and still waiting on dT&T to ship).

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 48, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)